Method for making concrete from drilling waste byproducts

Abstract

The present application discloses systems and methods for utilizing drilling byproducts from gas and oil wells to make commercially-marketable concrete. According to one inventive concept, the byproducts (which includes drill cuttings and flow-back) are treated with a dewatering agent to form a waste slurry, and the waste slurry is then added to a concrete-mixing process as the final component, after all of the other components of the concrete-mixing process have already been blended together. In some embodiments, the dewatering agent is calcium oxide (CaO). According to another inventive concept, the drilling byproducts that are collected from a first drilling site may be used to form the concrete that is to form a concrete drilling pad that is located at a second drilling site.

1 . A method for producing concrete from drilling byproducts, the method comprising:
 mixing the drilling byproducts with a sufficient amount of a dewatering agent to form a waste slurry having a desired saturation percentage;   blending together all of the components of concrete except for the waste slurry to form an intermediate mixture; and   mixing the waste slurry into the intermediate mixture to form a concrete mixture.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the dewatering agent is calcium oxide. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the intermediate mixture consists essentially of cement, a coarse aggregate, and water. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the drilling byproducts consist essentially of drilling cuttings and flow-back. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising grinding the drilling byproducts and the dewatering agent into a fine aggregate while they are being mixed together to form the waste slurry. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the desired saturation percentage is less than or equal to approximately 90%. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the desired saturation percentage is small enough to satisfy an applicable jurisdictional regulation for the transportation of solid waste. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising storing the waste slurry in a storage area before it is mixed into the intermediate mixture, wherein the storage area is designed to maintain a saturation percentage of the waste slurry to within ±10% of the desired saturation percentage. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the step of storing the waste slurry in a storage area occurs at a same location as the step of mixing the drilling byproducts with a sufficient amount of the dewatering agent to form the waste slurry. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the step of storing the waste slurry in a storage area occurs at a same location as the blending step. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising pouring the concrete mixture to form a concrete structure. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the pouring step occurs at a permanent location for the concrete structure. 
     
     
         13 . A method for producing concrete, the method comprising:
 blending together cement, a coarse aggregate, and water to form an intermediate mixture; and   mixing drilling byproducts into the intermediate mixture to form a concrete mixture.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , further comprising grinding the drilling byproducts into a fine aggregate prior to the step of mixing the drilling byproducts into the intermediate mixture. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 13 , further comprising mixing the drilling byproducts with a dewatering agent to form a waste slurry prior to the step of mixing the drilling byproducts into the intermediate mixture. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising mixing the drilling byproducts with a sufficient amount of the dewatering agent to form the waste slurry with a desired saturation percentage. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the desired saturation percentage is less than or equal to approximately 90%. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the dewatering agent is calcium oxide. 
     
     
         19 . A method of using drilling byproducts to form a concrete drilling pad, the method comprising:
 making a concrete mixture from drilling byproducts that are collected from a first drilling site; and   using the concrete mixture to form a concrete drilling pad at a second drilling site.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein the step of making the concrete mixture further comprises:
 mixing the drilling byproducts with a dewatering agent to form a waste slurry; and   storing the waste slurry in a storage area before it is mixed into the concrete mixture.